In the bizarre world of 2020, the NBA conducted its offseason in November (draft, free agency, etc.), as opposed to June and July during normal times. Due to that, a sport that dominates the news cycle during the summer had to compete for headlines with the NFL season, and a little thing called the 2020 Presidential Election. At any rate, the NBA failed to disappoint, as moves galore took place in this condensed hiatus (with the start of the new season rapidly approaching on December 22). Let’s take a look at the winners and losers of the NBA offseason now that the dust has largely settled.
Winners of the NBA offseason
Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are the model example of the rich getting richer. Fresh off of winning the 2020 Finals in October in Orlando, the Lakers added Oklahoma City Thunder guard Dennis Schroder in a trade for guard Danny Green and the 28th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. Schroder, who averaged 18.9 points per game last season, gives the Lakers a third scorer to go with superstars Lebron James and Anthony Davis. He has blazing speed, making him a good fit for a team like the Lakers that likes to get out and play at a fast pace. The Lakers added Wesley Matthews, a guy who can shoot and is a tough perimeter defender. The Lakers signed center Marc Gasol, who can help space the floor for Lebron James and Anthony Davis and is a superb passer as well. The kicker for the Lakers in their busy offseason was signing big man Montrezl Harrell, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year. Harrell has an endless reserve of energy and upgrades the Lakers bench. An added incentive is that bringing in Harrell (formerly of the Los Angeles Clippers) weakens one of their main rivals. Though the Lakers lost Dwight Howard and Rajon Rondo in free agency, they were able to re-sign key contributors in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Markieff Morris.
Suns
The Phoenix Suns acquired point guard Chris Paul in a deal that sent point guard Ricky Rubio and small forward Kelly Oubre, among others, to the Thunder. Paul, one of the best point guards in NBA history, is still playing at a high level at the age of 35. He propelled the Thunder to a shocking playoff berth last season in the tough Western Conference for a team that had just traded superstars Russell Westbrook and Paul George. Paul joins a Suns team that last season improved from 21 wins in 2019 to 34 wins in 2020 (in only 73 games). The Suns ended last season on a high note, winning all eight games they played in the Disney World bubble. Phoenix has talent such as guard Devin Booker (one of the best scorers in the NBA), skilled big man Deandre Ayton, and forward Mikal Bridges, a terrific defender. From an intangible standpoint, Paul brings a wealth of playoff experience and savvy to a young team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010. Additionally, the Suns picked up forward Jae Crowder, who was a starter for the Miami Heat in their run to the NBA Finals last year. Finally, the Suns signed guard E’twaun Moore, who is a career 39 percent 3 point shooter…
Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks, who haven’t made the playoffs since 2017, made a gigantic splash in free agency. They signed prized free agents in forward Danilo Gallinari and guard Bogdan Bogdanovic. Both players are terrific shooters, who can also relieve some of the passing responsibilities off of franchise cornerstone Trae Young (who averaged 29.6 points per game last season). The Hawks also signed point guards Rajon Rondo and Kris Dunn. Rondo brings the experience of being a two-time champion, as well as being a terrific passer. Dunn is an excellent defender and only 26 years old. On top of that, the Hawks still have a terrific center in Clint Capela (who was acquired via trade in February) under contract, as well as power forward John Collins, who was a 20-10 player last season.
Trail Blazers
Portland had a tough season last year, as they had to scratch and claw to make the playoffs as an eight seed, where they bowed out to the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. However, the Blazers have been active this offseason. They traded veteran Trevor Ariza to the Houston Rockets for forward Robert Covington. Covington, like Ariza, is a prototypical “3 and D” player. However, he is five years younger than Ariza, making him an upgrade going forward. The Blazers traded for Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter, who previously played a key role for Portland in their run to the western conference finals in 2019. He is a terrific backup for Jusuf Nurkic, who will be available for a full season this year (he briefly returned from a broken leg at the end of the season last year). The Blazers also retained two of their own free agents. They re-signed swingman Rodney Hood. Hood is coming back from an Achilles injury last November. However, he is a gifted scorer and is still only 28 years old. The Blazers also are bringing back Carmelo Anthony, the future hall of famer who had a “feel-good” comeback last season after being out of the league for much of the 2018-2019 season.
Losers of the NBA offseason
Thunder
The Thunder, through a boundless amount of wheeling and dealing, have an arsenal of 18 first round picks from 2021-2027. These picks can be used on future draftees or flipped for established talent in the NBA, giving the Thunder hope for the future. However, this offseason saw the Thunder lose the aforementioned Chris Paul, Dennis Schroder, and Danilo Gallinari. The Thunder lost big man Nerlens Noel in free agency. Finally, they traded starting center Steven Adams (who was on the roster going back to the Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook days in the early-mid 2010s) to the New Orleans Pelicans. The Thunder are likely headed to the lottery this season.
Rockets
The good news for Houston is that they signed power forward Christian Wood, one of the most improved players in the league, with the Detroit Pistons last season. The Rockets also signed center Demarcus Cousins, a former all-star, who should be highly motivated after having his career sidetracked by injuries in recent years. However, the elephant in the room is that the Rockets two superstars, James Harden and Russell Westbrook, both want to be traded. Their unhappiness leaves the Rockets with the dilemma of either trying to repair things and still contend or trading them and starting a rebuild.
Warriors
The Golden State Warriors, who made five consecutive NBA Finals between 2015-2019 and won three titles, had a disastrous season last year due to an avalanche of injuries. The team lost superstar point guard Stephen Curry for all but five games due to a hand injury. His backcourt running mate Klay Thompson (an all-star himself) missed the season following a knee injury in the 2019 NBA Finals. The team was expected to return to title contention with the return to health of those two players (not to mention the fact the Warriors still have Draymond Green and a full offseason to integrate Andrew Wiggins into their system). However, Klay Thompson recently tore his Achilles playing in a pickup basketball game and will miss the season. This injury is a colossal blow to the Warriors prospects of competing with mighty Western Conference foes such as the Lakers, Nuggets, Clippers etc. The Warriors did add 7’1″ center James Wiseman with the second overall pick in the draft. They also traded for Kelly Oubre, an explosive athlete and good defender, who will help mitigate the loss of Thompson. However, I think the loss of Thompson is too much to overcome in the big picture for this season.
For more on the NBA Offseason, click here.
For a full NBA offseason transaction list, click here.
